Destiny lies ahead, memories lie in the past
by PrincessAmara
Summary: As she slept she saw herself standing in a soft meadow. The god tree was nearby and she faced the setting sun. Reds, yellows and oranges covered the air and everything else. She heard footsteps coming closer and she turned to her right. That’s when she sa


Inuyasha slept on a branch in his favorite tree. His ears twitched at the night sounds. His nose smelt the night air. He could hear the night birds rustling in the trees, the crickets chirping and… a woman's scream. He sat upright, now smelling blood. Looking over at the hut, he saw that the others were still asleep and had not heard. He heard and smelt a demon.

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Just outside the village in Inuyasha's forest a giant snake had a young girl trapped. She stood with her back against the hard cold stone of the side of a cliff. The snake stared at her with it's white glowing eyes. It hissed "You have failed for the lassst time, princesssss." She closed her eyes and desperately thought. 'Okay Mira, get a grip. It's just a demon lord, nothing else.' She opened her eyes and quickly searched the surrounding area. She gained the inner strength she needed and just as it attacked she dodged, landing on a large rock. She smiled evilly and said "Not today, Azmadias." Then she flipped backwards as it attacked again, landing a few feet away and she turned to run. But it was faster than she estimated and it blocked her only escape route. She glared at it and made up her mind. Hoping she was right, she stood still on the smooth flat rock and did not move.

It turned towards her and it said "I may be blind young one, but you cannot hide from me. I can hear you breathing." She smirked, but did not move. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes. She heard her master say "You mustn't see just what is in front of you, but rather see what is all around you." The only way to do that is to block out one sense to make the others stronger. "The only way to defeat your enemy is to become him." In other words, find his weakness. For Azmadias it wasn't being blind, it had strengthened it's other senses so it could see without it's eyes and that's what she had to do. She concentrated on hearing and smelling the snake.

A blurry image appeared before her, made out in greys. She could see the snake as it saw her. It struck and she moved, still having her eyes closed she pulled out her sword and attacked. This went on until she 'saw' someone else jump down out of no where and used wind scar to hurt the demon. Azmadias hissed "We ssshall meet again and you will pay for your foul deed, princessss." She opened her eyes and glared at the half-breed. She said, coldly "What do you think you were doing?" He said "I think I was saving your butt." She sheathed her sword and said "I was about to destroy that demon. Now it escaped." He smirked at her and sarcastically said "Yah, right." She sighed and said "If your done making fun of me, I really need to be going." She was about to walk away when he used his speed to stand right in front of her and block her way. He said "No way, you're not going anywhere. That demon is still out there." She said as she walked around him "I can take care of my self. The last thing I need is a hanyou breathing down my neck." He said "Fine whatever. But if you get killed. Don't blame it on me." She smiled over her shoulder and said "Don't worry, I won't." she disappeared into the darkness of the forest.

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She walked through the forest tired, weak, and bleeding. Her right arm was shredded by the claws of a large bear demon, that she fought after her encounter with Azmadias. She sat beside a tree, too weak to go any further. She closed her eyes and rested. Two hours later a young man, who was walking through the forest, spotted her and ran up to her. HE knelt beside her and glanced at her wounds. She was half concouse at the loss of blood and the pain. The villager draped her left arm around his shoulders and placed his right hand around her waist, using his left hand to hold her arm. He cautiously led her to his nearby village.

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Inuyasha and the others packed up and left Keade's village, intent on retrieving more shards of the Shikon jewel. As usual Inuyasha had his arms crossed and was complaining. Shippo was talking with Kagome about her life at home and a loud slap rang out across the area, the obvious sound of Sango's hand making perfect contact with the monk's cheek, making a very nice red hand print. Kagome sighed and Shippo winced, Inuyasha completely ignored them.

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The man brought Mirage to the village, where several men, with the women watching, helped bring her to the doctors hut. He told the men to place her on an empty bed and that he would take care of her. The men left assured that she would be well taken care of. The doctor, also named Souikotsu, examined his newest patient. She had many minor scrapes and bruises, the real obvious damage was her arm and there must have been a wound under her kimono, because a large dark red spot had appeared on her side and front. He took off the see through dark blue top to find a matching halter top and a lot of blood. He tried not to throw up, he was known for his weakness at the sight of blood. But one look at her pale face and he knew he couldn't let her die. HE cleaned the wound, Then re- examined the wound, with out the blood it was a lot easier to see the three large gashes that went from her side, all across her stomach and ended at her back. He sighed and wondered what could have done this much damaged. He bandaged up her middle and arm. Then he placed her daggers and sword against the nearby wall. He placed a blanket over her and went to gather herbs outside with the children he was taking care of.

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Inuyasha and the others walked all day and finally spotted a village. Miroku said that the place had been cursed by a demon and that he could exercise that village, for a price. The villagers happily agreed, but they had a small thought that the demon was the wounded girl from the forest.

IT didn't take long before Inuyasha and the others found out about her. Actually it was during dinner. Inuyasha inhaled the ramen noodles set before him and Miroku lectured him about 'Good manners' They heard, from outside the doors, a girl's voice say "Is she any better?" The shadow of another woman shook her head and said "The men say that she might be the demon that the monk had talked about. But she looked harmless." They sounded worried and then one of the girls left and the other walked into the room with some more tea for them. Kagome whispered "Who do you think they're talking about?" Inuyasha shrugged and said "Who cares?" Kagome said "You're so insensitive, Inuyasha." "Feh" Miroku asked the girl, "I keep hearing of a girl, that could possibly be the demon I sensed. Could you tell me more?" The girl said "You must mean the girl in the doctors hut. She arrived yesterday only half concouse and the men brought her to the doctor. HE said that she might survive but her injures were fatal and she was unconcous. No one knows anything else. Though you might want to aske the man who brought her to the village, he would probably have the answers you are looking for. His name is Gaushi." Miroku said "Thank you, Though I have one more question. Would you consider bearing my child?" Sango hit him extra hard and the girl rolled her eyes.

They finished eating and Shippo soon fell asleep on Kagome's lap. Inuyasha stretched and said "I'm going to bed." Then he walked over to the corner by the door and held Tetsuiga in his arms as he fell asleep, sitting up. Kagome sighed and said "Inuyasha's right. It's getting late." Miroku said "I agree, we will have to arise early if we are to gather all of the jewel shards before Naraku." Sango nodded and Miroku went over to the far wall and fell asleep, sitting up. Kagome fell asleep in her sleeping bag with Shippo beside her and Sango fell asleep on Kirara. The cool night air was silent once more.

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Not far from where they slept, the doctor rebandaged Mirage. He sighed 'I wonder, what is your name, young one. Where are you from and who did this to you?' His final thought was 'Will you ever wakeup?' Mirage slept on unaware of her surroundings. she could feel the cool breeze that blew through the night air, she could smell the sweet scent of the night and the scent of the doctor. She could even feel the softness of the blanket and the hardness of the wooden floor beneath her. She could hear the birds rustle through the trees and the crickets chirping. But she couldn't wakeup, all she could see was darkness and she was too tired and weak to stand or even sit. She wanted to run, run from all her fears, run from everything and everyone. Run away into her own little world and never return. She could never face the truth, it would kill her.

As she slept she saw herself standing in a soft meadow. The god tree was nearby and she faced the setting sun. Reds, yellows and oranges covered the air and everything else. She heard footsteps coming closer and she turned to her right. That's when she saw him, the hanyou from earlier. He walked up to her and stood a few feet away. He crossed his arms and said "This is your fault. You never protected them. You ran as they died, you cannot run forever and one day your past will catch up to you." The soft meadow and sunset disappeared. All around them fire burned. She saw her village burning and the dead scattered, the blood stained earth. She saw her little brother clutching her fathers dead body, crying. She felt as if she would faint, but she walked over to her brother and placed a hand on his shoulder. She knelt beside him as she looked over at her fallen father, she said "Don't worry Sasske. It'll be allright." She heard Naraku walk up behind her and say "Sasske, come with me if you want to forget what you have done." With tears and anger in her eyes, she stood up and faced her enemy. She said "It wasn't Sasske who did this. You made him, this is all your fault." Naraku smirked and said "That is not what your brother thinks." She turned to see Sasske stand up and wipe his tears he turned to her and said "I have failed father. I have to go with Naraku." Then they walked off together, leaving her behind. Inuyasha stood a few feet away as he watched the scene play out. He turned to her and she to him. She said "Take me back." He nodded and waved one clawed hand. He disappeared with the horrifying scene. She only saw blackness now and she welcomed it.

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The next morning Inuyasha and the others had breakfast as the discussed the days plans. Miroku said "I should go and exercise the village, than I will go and check on this so called 'Demon girl'" Kagome said "I'll go with you." Shippo nodded and said "Me too." Inuyasha said "I'm just going to hang around the village, there's not much to do anyway." Kagome asked "What are you going to do Sango?" Sango said "I think I will clean Hariakos and I'll take Kirara with me."

They finished breakfast and then went their separate ways. Sango found a nearby meadow where she sat and talked with Kirara as she cleaned Hariakos. Inuyasha sat on the porch of the hut that they were staying at, and thought about Kikyo and Kagome. Miroku had already exercised the village wich was quite easy since there was no need in the first place. Miroku said "There, all done. Shall we go find this Gaushi person and ask him about the demon girl?" Kagome nodded and shippo, who was sitting on Kagome's shoulder, said "Do we have to? I mean, what if she is a real demon and attacks us?" He started to tremble in fear. Miroku waved his hand dismissivly and said "Come come , shippo. There must be a reasonable explanation for this." HE started to walk away and Kagome followed. They found a villager plowing the nearby field Kagome said "Excuse me, could you tell us where to find Gaushi?" The man nodded and said "He's at the edge of the woods, chopping wood." The man pointed to the back of the village where soft booming sounds were heard. Miroku bowed and said "Thank you for your helpfulness." They left and walked toward the sound.

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The doctor was picking more herbs when one of the children ran out to him. He said "Doctor! Doctor! The woman! She's really hot and she's shaking!" The doctor ran into the hut. Mirage trembled as sweat dripped down her face. He said "Children go retrieve senenso berries from the field and some water." The children nodded and hurried off. He knelt beside her and pulled off the blanket. Blood had appeared on the bandages and she felt ice cold. Her eyes were shut tight with pain. He thought 'I've only seen this with poisons, but I never found any. I must have missed some, if I don't hurry she'll shurly die.' The children came and handed him the water and herbs. He said "I want all of you to leave. Riakotsu, I need you to stay and help me." The oldest of the children nodded and the others left.

She walked over to the doctor and asked "What would you like me to do?" The doctor said "I need you to sit on the other side of her and make sure she doesn't wake up. If she does, tell me right away." The girl nodded and sat beside the Mirage. The doctor pulled off the bandage around her arm and cleaned the wound. HE was shocked to find that there was no sign of any poison. He carefully examined the wound and came to the conclusion that it must be her other wound. He left her halter top on and just moved it aside. Then he removed the bandeages and found a lot of blood and her skin around the wound had turned a deep crisom red.

He c leaned the wound and saw that the poison had not spread as far as he had feared. Riakotsu gasped at all of the blood, but she did not move. The doctor said "I have to cut the wound open more and drain the blood. I need you to watch her face, If she wakes, tell me." The little girl nodded and was glad that she did not have to look at the blood any more. She intently watched the womans face wince in pain as the doctor cut the wound open and started to drain the blood. The doctor saw the red crisom blood and a dark blue liquid pour out. He was right, she was poisoned. He used cloths to wipe up the blood as best he could. Suddenly Riakotsu said "Doctor, I think she's waking up." The doctor looked up at her face and saw her eyes start to flicker. 'Oh no, if she wakes up, the pain could kill her. If the wound doesn't first.' He quickly got up and grabbed a small bottle, he handed it to Riakotsu and said "If her eyes open, make her drink this. It should make her unconscious, if only for a little while." The girl took the bottle and nodded.

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Mirage felt a sharp pain cut through her darkness. She winced and felt her whole body heat up as if on fire. She couldn't move and she felt the poison spread. Then she heard voices, a childs and a man's. She heard footsteps and the doctor instructing the little girl. The girl sounded scared and worried, and the doctor sounded unsure. Then she felt a sharper pain as a blade cut through her side, she felt the blood pour out of her with the poison. The pain was bringing her out of her darkness and back into reality. Her eyes flickered and finally opened, she saw a blurry form of a childs face gasp, and she turned her head and saw the blurry image of a worried doctor as he wiped up her blood. She winced again and the child opened the bottle. She turned towards the child at the sound and the child lifted her head. Mirage felt her ehad rest on the childs small lap and a bottle press against her lips. The child whispered "Drink this." Mirage did as she was told and the child removed the bottle. Mirage suddenly felt dizzyand very tired. She closed her eyes and drifted back into her darkness. She blacked out and the pain slowly faded.

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The child sighed, happy that the woman had become unconscious. Soont he doctor finishd and said "Riakotsu, could you hand me my needle and thread?" The girl nodded and gently placed the woman's head on the ground. She handed the materials to Suikotsu and went back to sit beside the woman. The doctor cleaned the wound and closed it. HE then rebandaged it and Riakotsu helped him clean up. The doctor wrapped another blanket around Mirage and sighed. Mirage was still lost to the world.

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Inuyasha wokeup and smelt the scent of blood. But when he saw it was coming from the doctors hut, he relaxed. HE still felt uneasy though, the scent rminded him of something. Just the n he smelt the scent of a demons poison. HE decided to check it out and stood up. He walked over to the hut and knocked on the door. The doctor stood up and walked over to the door. HE saw Inuyasha standing there and Inuyasha asked "You alright?" The doctor nodded and said "Yes, I am." Inuyasha said "I couldv'e sworn I smelt a demon's blood." The doctor was shocked but he said "You must mean my patient. She was poisoned by a demon and I had to remove some of her blood." Inuyasha nodded, still inconvinced and just then Kagome, Miroku and Shippo walked up to them.

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They soon found Gaushi, chopping wood as the man had said. Kagome said "Hey, I was wondering if you could help us." ThE man nodded and they walked over to a fallen tree. Sitting on it, the man asked "What is it that you would like to know." Miroku said "The woman you brought to the village two days ago." The man nodded and said "Yes, I remember. I was walking through the woods, looking for a herb that the doctor had asked me to get. I had found the herb and was walking back to the village when I saw a woman leaning against a tree unconscious. Blood was all around her and she had many cuts and scrapes on her body. Her right arm was also torn up pretty bad. I took her back to the village and the doctor bandaged her up. HE says that she probably won't live, but he is still trying. I just don't know what could've happened to her that made that much damdge." Miroku bowed and said "Thasnk you so much for your help." The man nodded and said "You're welcome." They left to go and see the doctor.

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Kagome said "Inuyasha?" Inuyasha crossed his arms and said "What?"Miroku asked "Wat are you doing here?" Inuyasha said "I smelt a demon's blood and I followed it here." Inuyasha walked away and said "I shouldv'e stayed asleep." Miroku turned to the doctor and said "We were wondering if you could tell us about the girl."The man nodded and he sat on the porch and they did the same. He told them "When the villagers brought the girl to me, she was badly cut up. I told them to bring her inside and a bandaged her wounds." He looked over at the door of the hut and said "I just found out that she had been poisoned." HE sighed and said "I don't think she'll survive another night." Miroku said "Is there anything I can do to help?" The doctor said "I could use some help, If you want. The only help I've had so far has been from the children I have deen taking care of." Miroku nodded and Kagome said "Shippo and I will help too." Shippo nodded in agreement and said "So, when do we start?" The doctor smiled at the young kti and said "I could use some help picking herbs and someone has to watch over the girl." They nodded and Shiipo went to play with the kids, Kagome helped pick herbs and Miroku sat on the porch soaking in the sun as Riakotsu kept an eye on Mirage.

Suikotsu said "So, you're a miko right?" Kagome said "I guess so." "You don't dress like one. Though you look a lot like the priestess Kikyo." Kagome asked "You know Kikyo?" The doctor said "She has visited us before and helped me for a few days. She suddenly had to leave after she sensed a demonic arua nearby." Kagome asked "Has there been any demons nearby?" "Not for years. That's why everyone is so worried about the new girl. Some think she's a demon who was attaked by another." Shiipo added "What if she was a girl attacked by a demon?" The doctor shook his head and said "That's impossible, ademon wouldn't attack a girl without killing her. Unless she attacked it. But no one would be that foolish." Shippo was scared and said "Do you really think she is a demon?" The doctor said "I didn't see anything that would prove her to be a demon. But I'm not really sure, she's been unconscious the whole time, except for two seconds when she woke up during the surgery." HE shook his head and said "I'm not sure if she is a demon, but until someone can prove she is. I'll keep taking care of her."

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Mirage felt a sharp pain of her wounds, the pain throbbed in her arm and side. She winced, but she couldn't move. She couldn't or wouldn't open her eyes, thankful for the rest and peace. But the pain was unbearable. Riakotsu saw Mirage wince in pain and she knew mirage was half conscious. She quickly stood up and ran to the porch. Miroku was sitting beside a post and staring into the afternoon sky. He heard Riakotsu run up behind him and he turned to her. She said "Miroku-chan, the girl is waking." Miroku quickly got up and walked into the hut. He saw her wince again, her muscles tightened and relaxed. He quickly grabbed the bottle the doctor had told him to use. He knelt beside the girl and rested her head in his lap. She winced again and he could see her breathing quicken and become shallow. He could only guesss the pain she was in.

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Mirage couldn't think of anything, but the pain as it coursed through her body. She felt her head being lifted up and rested on a soft and warm object. Her eyes flickered and she slowly wokeup. AT first everything was blurry, all she could see was the ceiling and then a man's face. She closed her eyes and tensed, not because of the pain. Because for years she didn't trust humans and very few demons and now one had her head on his lap and she was weak and vulnerable. He could see that she was waking up, but he needed her to be fully awake before he gave her the medicine that would subdue the pain.

She opened her eyes when he didn't move. She started to see clearly and she saw that he was a monk. She sat up and clutched her head from sudden dizziness. He held out the open bottle and she glanced at him, unsure if she should trust him. He said, softly "Take it, it'll help with the pain." She still was unsure, but she took it and drank it. He took it from her and stood up. She kept and eye on him, not trusting him at all. Riakotsu said "I'll go tell Suikotsu that she has awaken." Miroku nodded as he poured water into a bowl and grabbed a white cloth. Mirage was looking at her bandaged arm when he walked over to her. She looked up at him and he knelt beside her. She tensed, uncertain if she should run.

He placed the bowl down and said "Relax, I need to rebandage your arm." She didn't move but she finally relaxed and held out her arm. He smiled and began to unwrap her arm. She asked "Why are you helping me?" He didn't look up and said "The doctor needed help and I said I would take care of you so he could finish with the rest of his work." She kept her eye on the monk while she stared out of the window, trying to figure out what had happened. He said "Done," She looked down and saw that her arm was neatly bandaged. He said "Lie down." She looked at him shocked and he said, smiling "I need to bandage your other wound."

She lied down on her back always keeping an eye on the monk. She rested her head on the pillow and sighed, she was tired of being so careful about her wounds. He gently started to clean the wound. Mirage stared at his face as she thought 'What is a Monk doing saving a wicken like me? I'm going to die soon anyway, why would he waste his time to save me?' Miroku said "What is your name?" She snapped back to reality and uncertainly said "It's Mirage." She felt his soft touch as he cleaned and bandaged her wound. She asked "What's your name?" He looked at her face and said "It's Miroku." She smiled, a real smile, for the first time since Naraku had shown up. He smiled back and then went back to work. He asked "Where are you from?" She said "A hidden village in the northern lands. It's further west from here." He finished and said "Do you know who did this to you?" She looked at him shocked and then she looked away. She said "Two demons and …a human." He looked at her surprised and said "What exactly happened?" She sat up and sighed. She said "Naraku had destroyed my village and killed everyone. I managed to escape with my life. I was weak and injured and… I ran, as demons finished off the village and Naraku stole my brother. I ran, I didn't want to but…" Tears flooded over and she started to cry. Miroku sat behind her and wrapped his arms around her, careful of her wounds. She forgot about being scared and snuggled closer as tears raced down her cheeks. He pulled her onto his lap and held her close. She rested her head in the crook of his neck and cried. A little while later, she had fallen asleep. Miroku smiled down at the sleeping girl and thought 'poor girl, she must be soo weak.' HE gently placed her back into her bed. She winced but remained asleep.

He covered her with a blanket and walked out side to see that it was time for supper. He walked to the field that the doctor and Kagome were working in. He said "Hi," Kagome looked up and swmiled, the doctor said "I heard that our patient has woken up?" Miroku nodded and said "I gave her the medicine and rebandaged her wounds, then she fell asleep." Shippo jumped on hiS shoulder and asked "Is she a demon?" Miroku said "No, though she is very tense and I had a hard time of getting her to trust me enough so that I could bandage her arm." The Doctor nodded and said "She will have to be rebandaged tomorrow morning. Since she's already used to you," Miroku said "I'll be there before sinrise." The doctor nodded and then they all said their good byes.

Inuyasha was sitting beside the fire and was very annoyed. When Kagome and the others walked in, he jumped up and said "Where have you been?" Kagome said "Sit Boy!" The spell worked and Inuyasha was eating dirt. Sango sighed, she and kirara had arrived earlier to find Inuyasha already annopyed. Kagome opened her bag and pulled out a few packages of ramen noodles. Miroku sat beside the fire, deep in thought. Koagome cooked the food and then passed it out. They ate in silence until Shippo said "When are we leaving?" Kagome looked over at Inuyasha who said "We'll leave three days from now." They looked at him shocked Sango whispered to Miroku, "I don't get it, usually Inuyasha wants to leave as soon as possible." Miroku said "You're right, this is strange." The looked up to find the others staring at them. Kagome said "Anyway, why?" Inuyasha shrugged and said "Feh." Kagome leaned over so her face was just infront of his and she glared at him. He got so nervous his ears started to twich. Sango smothered a laugh and Miroku rolled his eyes at the two. Shippo fell over laughing and Kirara ignored them all and continued eating. Kagome gave up and sat back down. They finished eating and they soon fell asleep.

Inuyasha woke up early the next morning to the sound of footsteps. HE opened his eyes and saw Miroku just leaveing. He followed him outside and said "Miroku, where are you going?" Miroku turned to him and said "I promised the doctor that I would watch the girl so he can finish with the rest of the patients." Inuyasha said "I'm going with you." Miroku uncertainly said "Are you sure, Inuyasha?" Inuyasha walked past him and said "Come on, monk." Miroku sighed and followed Inuyasha to the doctor's hut. They quietly knocked on the door and the doctor answered. HE smiled at the monk and said "The children are just eating and the girl is still asleep." Miroku nodded and they followed the doctor inside. Inuyasha suddenly smelt a familiar scent coming from the other room. He remembered the girl from the woods that he saved from the demon. 'But what is she doing here?' was the thought that was ran through his head. The children were all eating and Riakotsu came in with a full plate of supper. She handed it to another child and said "She won't eat anything." The doctor looked very worried and told Miroku "She hasn't eaten since she came here, if she doesn't eat soon she'll certainly die. Maybe you could get her to eat?" Miroku nodded and took the fresh plate of food.

Inuyasha followed him into the room. He was shocked at the sight, the strong and hard headed teen he met in the woods was replaced with a sleeping pale girl. He stood against the wall and watched the girl sleep. Miroku went over and opened up the window. Inuyasha suddenly smelt the scent of a demon. A small snake slithered out from under Mirage's covers laughing evilly to itself. Inuyasha quickly grabbed it and said "What did you do?" The snake, now scared said "I followed my masters orders. Someone had removed his poison and he told me to bite her." Inuyasha quickly killed the demon and they looked over at the girl. Mirage felt poison, once again, flow through her blood. MIroku pulled out an antidote from his robes and said "Inuyasha, I need you to hold her head." HE nodded and knelt behind the girl, he gently lifted it onto his lap. Miroku searched her body for bite marks but could not find any. Inuyasha felt two bite marks from where he was holding her head. "Hey, Miroku. I think I found where he bit her." Miroku examined her neck and nodded. He said "We have to wake her up and make her sit straight up, it should slow down her blood flow." Inuyasha 'gently' shook the girl awake.

Mirage wokeup and felt Inuyasha's sharp claws on her neck. She tensed and quickly sat up, which made her head pound. She held her head and turned around and saw Inuyasha. She gasped and wasn't sure what to do. Inuyasha grabbed her shoulders and turned her around, roughly. He didn't say anything and she was frozen with fear. Then she saw Miroku, she asked "Houshi-sama, what is going on?" Miroku said "A snake demon bit you and we have to remove the poison. She leaned her head back and groaned and said "Not again." Inuyasha shoved her shoulders forward and she sat up straight, still scared of the hanyou. Miroku said "We need to draw out the blood. Inuyasha could you use your claws to cut around the wound?" Mirage stiffened and froze. Inuyasha growled and said "Do I have to?" Miroku said "We could just let her die, and Kagome wouldn't be too happy. She might even sit you for it." Inuyasha froze for a second and said "Fine, I'll do it." Inuyasha stood up and miroku knelt behind her and said "I need you to lay down." Mirage laid down on her back, wincing from the pain of her wounds.

Miroku moved so he was on her left side and Inuyasha sat right beside her head. She turned her head so she could see Miroku and the punture wounds were exposed to Inuyasha. Miroku saw the fear in her eyes and took her hand. She wined as Inuyasha cut her neck open enough for the poison to drip out. She shut her eyes, not wanting to see the blood. A minute passed and Miroku released her hand. She wanted to look, but Inuyasha said "You'd better keep your eyes closed." She did as she was told. Miroku came back with some clothes and wiped up the blood, he said "The doctor left a few minutes ago to treat a man in a nearby village. So we're sstuck taking care of her ourselves. But we still have Riakotsu." Inuyasha nodded and walked outside to clean his claws. Mirage smelt the scent of her own blood and hated it. Blood meant death, it meant her death was nearing. Miroku cleaned up the blood and said "Could you sit up? I need to make sure the wound isn't too deep and that we got all of the poison out." She sat up and opened her eyes. He knelt beside her and pushed her hair to the side. He saw that there wasn't much damage and the blood stopped dripping. HE stood up and sighed. She looked over at him, but said nothing. He walked out of the room and went outside to check on the children. She sighed and walked over to sit beside the window.

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Sango wokeup and saw that Kagome was already awake. Sango packed her things and said "Kagome, I need to get Hariakos fixed." Kagome nodded and said "I'll tell the others." Sango said "Thank you." Then she left with Kirara. Kagome stood up and gently woke Shippo up. Shippo said "What time is it?" As he rubbed his eyes. Kagome smiled at the young kit and said "I thought you were going to play with the children?" Shippo stood up and said "I'm not going to play. I have to guard them." Kagome giggled and said "Okay Shippo. I need you to tell Inuyasha that I'm going to help around the village, anycase he needs me." Shippo nodded and then ran out of the door. Kagome sighed and then got ready for the day.

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Mirage stood up and and stretched, she grabeed her sword and Daggers. Then she walked out side. She loved her halter top and the matching jeans she wore. She also had a sash that was tied around her waist.

She stepped outside into the bright sunlight. She stretched and then walked over to the meadow, where she found a small kit playing with the doctor's children. She also saw the hanyou sitting in a nearby tree and Miroku sitting beside the well, keeping an eye on the children. She sighed and walked towards the woods that was behind the village. Her daggers was tied to her left side and her sword was strapped to her waist with her sash. She walked around the village instead of through it, not wanting to attract unwanted attention. Inuyasha smelt her leave and told Miroku "The girl left. I'll go after her." Miroku nodded, lost in thought. Inuyasha used his demon speed to carry him towards the scent of the girl.

He found her, deep in the woods beside a large waterfall. She was kneeling beside a rock and had her head buried in her arms ontop of it. HE heard her softly crying and cautiously walked up behind her. Mirage heard footsteps walking up behind her and felt the blood cursing through his viens. Her eyes flashed and she waited. He gently touched her shoulder and she turned around, still acting afraid of him. She stood up and looked up at him with tears in her eyes. She slowly walked to him and fell crying into his arms. He wrapped his arms around her and she pulled out one of her Daggers. She held it at his neck and smiled at the shocked look on his face. They could hear the birds chirping in the trees around them and the rushing of the water. She said "I've learned a lot about you, Inuyasha. You are strong and fast. Your only weakness is you'er too caring. That will be your down fall." He said "Who are you?" She smiled and said "My name is Mirage, I am one of the Hex girls and I will kill Azmadias. I don't need you or anyone else getting in my way and if I have to, I'll kill you." Then she turned and ran. He knew she was too weak to last for long, especially against a giant snake demon that obviously wanted her dead. He finally caught up to her in a meadow, miles away from the village.

A giant snake stared at her. She threw her Daggers to the side and they stuck into the ground a few feet away. She then pulled out her sword and said "Fight me Azmadias, You will pay for the blood you have shed upon my lands." The snake laughed, evilly and said "Their blood was spilled because you failed our master and you had to pay the price." She growled and said "I never failed him. I had the jewel, you told him that I lost it. Just so you and the others could destroy my village." Azmadias said "You're right, and it was fun. Though Naraku stole your brother before we could kill him. That was a real shame." Inuyasha walked up beside her and said "Mirage, I'll kill him. You're too weak." She glared at him and said "I'm fine." Then she attacked the demon. It used it's tail to knock her away. She landed on the ground, hard. She stood up and attacked again, this time dodging it's tail. Inuyasha could only watch. After a lot of fighting Mirage fell for the last time. Inuyasha protected her and used backlash wave to destroy the demon.

He knelt beside Mirage and rolled her onto her back. She winced in pain, blood poired from her old and new wounds. Inuyasha was about to pick her up, when she grabbed his arm and said "No," He looked down onto her face. Her eyes still had their burning fire inside. But she was pale and even weaker than before. She looked across the meadow and saw the sun beginning to set. She said "It looks like I'm not going to survive." Inuyasha finally figured out that he loved her, maybe not as much as kikyo, but he still loved her. He said "No, you can't die. What about your brother?" Her smile was sad and she winced in pain. But she said "My brother id dead, as I will be soon. I will never see him again or hear his voice." Inuaysha said "How do you know he's dead? Naraku still has Sango's brother, I'm sure he still has yours." She smiled that same sad smile and said "Inuyasha, I know my brother is dead, because I was the one to kill him. Naraku sent him to kill me and the other Hex girls. He was going to hurt them and I couldn't stand it. I caught him and pinned him on the gorund. I promised him that I would kill him and then myself. I broke that promise. I tried to kill myself but my wicken blood woldn't let me die by my own hands. I cried as the rain washed away my brothers blood. Then I ran, as fast and as far as I could. Demons attacked me and I killed them. That's when I found you. Another demon attacked me and I was so weak I almost lost. I was badly wounded and rested beside a tree, ready to die. A man saved me and that Monk and doctor took care of me. All I ever wanted to do was die, but I couldn't." Tears started to fall as it started to rain.

Inuaysha said 'Come on, we need to get you somewhere dry." She said "Inuyasha, please. Just let me die. That's all I ever wanted." Inua\yasha shook his head and said "I'm gonna give you a second chance. Your brother wouldn't want you to die." She nodded and Inuyasha helped her stand up. He draped her left arm over his shoulders and place his right arm around her waist, using his left hand to hold her arm. He cautiously led her to the village. Miroku saw them coming and helped Inuyasha lead her inside. She was unconscious in a few seconds after she was laid down on the bed. Inuyasha went to go find Kagome as Miroku dried and cleaned her wounds. She stared at the ceiling,not moving and not speaking. The silence was tense and she didn't even want to be there, she wanted to still be in that field, dead. Miroku left as night fell, they never spoke to each other the whole time.

She closed her eyes and let the darkness swallow her up. She heard footsteps walk into the room and opened her eyes. The doctor never found out about what had happened. He knelt beside her and checked her wounds. She winced in pain, but said nothing. He said "What happened? You're more hurt than yesterday." He saw the uneasy air about her and she sat up. He said "What's wrong?" She srested her head on her knees and said "I made a mistake. But I think I did the right thing." She looked him with sadness in her eyes and he said "What happened?" She explained everything and when she finished, he said "It will be alright. The demon is dead and you will soon be better. You just need rest." She looked into his eyes and said "I need to speak with someone, may I please go?" He was unsire, her injuries were bad. But he nodded and said "Come straight back." She nodded and walked out of the hut. Outside she took off her kimonon and felt the breeze brush her hair back. She silently walked to the hut and knocked. Miroku heard the knocking and stood up, Inuyasha just ignored it,because he knew it was her.

Miroku said "Lady Mirage, what brings you here?" She said "I need to speak with master Inuyasha." He nodded and Inuyasha walked out with his arms crossed. He said "What is it?" She bowed and said "I know someone who knows where Nraku is." Inuyasha said "We're leacing tomorrow. We'll find Naraku by ourselves." She soghed and said "Get Miroku and come with me. I need you to trust me." He nodded and soon came out with Miroku. They followed her deep into the woods that was infront of the village. She knelt infornt of them as they sat down. She said "I want you to meet, Miduriko." She closed her eyes and the old warrior appeared behind her. Midoriko opened her eyes and smiled. She said "Welcome young ones." Miroku said "Could you tell us where to find Naraku?" Mirage closed her hands infront of her and slowly opened them to reaveal a glass mirror. The mirror showed them an image of Naraku with Kagra and Kanna, beside him. Mirduriko said "He's in the nothren lands. Follow the silver wing." Then Midurioku vanished and Mirage stood up.

They started to walk back to the village. Miroku said "How did you know to summon Miduriko?" mirage said "When I was younger I found out that I was a Wicken. So, when ever I got bored I would summon Miduriko and we would play together. She'd even give me advice." Inuyasha said "Why didn't you get her to save you from the nsake?" Mirage said "She's my guardian spirit, not my personal body guard.Besides, I could've taken on Azmadias by my self." Inuyasha smiled at her detrmination and Miroku said "SO, what are you going to do now/" She looked up at the trees and said "I guess I'm going to stya at the village and help the doctor." Inuaysaha said "Just stay out of trouble." She smiled and said "As if." They arrived at the village and then went their separate ways. The next morning Mirage came out wearing her dark blue kimono. Hse bowed to Inuyasha and the others and said "Thank you Inuyasha." He smiled at her and turned and walked away. She smiled and she knew. Kagome hugged her amd said "We'll visit as soon as we can." Mirage smiled and said "I'll miss you."

The End 


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